So, it looks like
David Ortiz will be a little slower to return to the Sox. While Opening Day
isn’t officially ruled out quite yet…it’s not exactly likely at this point. So,
the immediate question is, what does all this mean?
Short term, you just
deal with it. Napoli DH’s, and Carp plays at first more than you thought. It
would probably happen for a couple weeks at some point during the season
anyway. It’s just at the beginning now. Even long term, that’s probably the
move. You hate to dig into your depth right out of the gate. But, the whole
team was, in fact, built around depth. Every player on the roster is just above
average. So, every player should be able to slide into another slot. This is
where it’s handy that Ortiz is a DH. Anybody and everybody could be put there
for a game. Isn’t that what teams are supposed to be moving towards anyway?
Isn’t the pure DH a thing of the past? The DH spot is just a place to put a guy
to rest a bit while not playing the field. Napoli one day. Ellsbury one day.
Gomes one day. And so on.
The one thing that
system is lacking is the David Ortiz presence. Which, I suppose, depends on how
much presence he still has. Do opposing teams still fear him? Is he more
protection for Pedroia than Middlebrooks will be? What about the clubhouse?
Does he still drive the team? Is Pedroia’s nuttiness enough, when combined with
Victorino’s exuberance?
Probably.
Very rarely would
the prospect of losing what I assume will be the clean-up hitter be such a
non-issue with me. I guess I only put Ortiz at clean-up by default. This isn’t
2005 or 2006 Ortiz. This is a guy who is just a bit better than the guy who
will bat third…or fifth. Maybe this depth thing will help out just the way it’s
supposed to. Maybe this will be a glimpse of the future.
Or, maybe, Ortiz
makes it moot by playing on April 1.
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